Indianapolis Selects Daniel Scott In Fifth Round

Former California football player Daniel Scott was selected Saturday in the fifth round of the 2023 NFL Draft by the Indianapolis Colts with the 158th pick overall. Cal has now had one player taken in the NFL Draft in 35 of the last 37 NFL Drafts. Scott becomes the 245th Cal player selected in the history of the NFL Draft and Cal's 253rd selection in either the NFL or AFL Draft, with eight players taken in the latter draft that ran from 1960-69.

Cal has five current NFL safeties selected in the last four NFL Drafts with Scott joining 2020 draftees Ashtyn Davis (New York Jets, third round) and Jaylinn Hawkins (Atlanta Falcons, fourth round), followed by Camryn Bynum (Minnesota Vikings, fourth round) and Elijah Hicks (Chicago Bears, seventh round) in 2021 and 2022, respectively.

"It just shows and is a testament of what kind of coaching staff and what type of program you have at Cal – how you're teaching your players, how you're trying to develop them," Scott said about the Golden Bears' recent surge of safeties that have gone on to the NFL. "To have a safety drafted in each of the last four years and to be on an active roster on a team – I don't know what more information you need to prove to you that Cal is a place to go to if you need to go to the NFL and have aspirations of going to the NFL and playing defensive back. I'd take my son there, I'd take my kid there, and I hope others do that as well."

Scott is the first Cal player to have been drafted by Indianapolis since defensive back Dante Hughes in the third round of the 2007 NFL Draft and the seventh time overall the Colts have selected a Cal player.

The 2023 NFL Draft at Union Station in Kansas City that began Thursday is concluding today with rounds four through seven. The draft is being televised live on ABC, ESPN and NFL Network. Live streams can also be accessed via WatchESPN, CBS Sports HQ and NFL.com.

Below are notes on Scott, as well as Cal football draft notes, and a list of former Cal players currently on NFL rosters. 

Daniel Scott, Safety, 6-2, 215, Pasadena, CA/St. Francis HS
FBS Collegiate Career (Cal, 2017-22)
Bachelor's – Sociology (May 2021); Graduate Certificate (Business Administration, December 2021)
After Cal
– Participated in Cal's Pro Day and went through a position workout in front of scouts from approximately 25 NFL teams 
– Had a strong 2023 NFL Combine, clocking in with a time of 4.45 in the 40-yard dash to rank second among 19 safeties at the event, while recording the top time in his position group for the 3-cone drill (6.75) and 20-yard shuttle (4.17), and also ranking among the top five for safeties in bench press reps (22, 4th), broad jump (10' 8", 4th), vertical jump (39.50", 5th) and 10-yard split (1.55, T-5th)
– Played in the 2023 Senior Bowl, contributing one tackle and one key pass breakup for the National team in a 27-10 win over the American squad

 
FBS Collegiate Career (Cal, 2017-22)
— Played in 49 games with 28 starts over his final five seasons (2018-22) after redshirting as a 2017 true freshman
— Registered 207 tackles, 7.0 tackles for loss (-44 yards), 1.0 sack (-27 yards), seven interceptions that he returned for 65 yards and one touchdown, three forced fumbles, one fumble recovery, seven pass breakups and four quarterback hurries
— Earned third-team All-Pac-12 honors from Phil Steele and Pro Football Focus, as well as an honorable mention selection from the league's coaches, as a 2022 senior when he had career highs of 85 tackles, four pass breakups, two forced fumbles and 59 interception return yards, while equaling the three interceptions and two quarterback hurries he recorded as a 2021 senior
– Earned first-team All-Pac-12 honors from Pro Football Focus and was PFF's second-highest rated safety in the conference behind only teammate Elijah Hicks as a 2021 senior when he started a career-high-tying all 12 games at safety and had 82 tackles, as well as career highs of 4.5 tackles for loss (career-high -37 tackle for loss yards) and 1.0 sack (career-high -27 sack yards), one forced fumble, a career-high-tying three interceptions that he returned for six yards, a career-high-tying two quarterback hurries and two pass breakups
– Had his lone career fumble recovery as a 2018 redshirt freshman against Colorado
 
Additional Cal Football NFL Draft Notes

– Cal has had 27 first-round NFL Draft selections, including two No. 1 overall picks in quarterbacks Jared Goff (Los Angeles Rams, 2016) and Steve Bartkowski (Atlanta Falcons, 1975). Cal has four first-round picks currently active in Goff, defensive tackle Tyson Alualu (2010 – No. 10, Jacksonville Jaguars), quarterback Aaron Rodgers (2005 – No. 24, Green Bay Packers) and defensive end Cameron Jordan (2011 – No. 24, New Orleans Saints). Rodgers and Jordan have played their entire careers for the teams that drafted them although Rodgers was traded to the New York Jets on Monday after spending his first 18 NFL seasons in Green Bay. Goff has played the last two campaigns with Detroit after five seasons with the Rams. Alualu, who is currently a free agent, spent his first seven seasons with the Jaguars and last six in Pittsburgh.

– Cal's six quarterbacks selected in the first round of the NFL Draft are tied for the third most by any college football program behind only Notre Dame (9) and USC (7), while equaling Stanford. In addition to Bartkowski, Rodgers and Goff, Cal's other first-round quarterbacks include Craig Morton (1965 – No. 5, Dallas Cowboys), Rich Campbell (1981 – No. 6, Green Bay Packers) and Kyle Boller (2003 – No. 19, Baltimore Ravens).

– Cal's first NFL Draft selection was tackle Larry Lutz (Boston Redskins, sixth round) in the first year of the event in 1936, while the most recent selections in 2022 were outside linebacker Cameron Goode (Miami Dolphins, seventh round) and Hicks.